Ebonites

Contents

The Ebonites were an exceptionally diverse organization that held allegiance to no particular nation, although they did have strong historical ties to the Ivory Kingdoms, a region of the world located far southwest of the Jewel of the Desert. After centuries of struggle and of being drawn into the conflicts of other groups, both martial and political, the Ebonites had settled into a comfortable role within the city, as protectors and defenders of the downtrodden. While this was a great task for the order, and one that garnered them tremendous appreciation from those whom they protected, it was secondary to their primary concern: protecting the broken shards of the Ebon Stone that they revered and held sacred in the Temple of the Black Stone at Medinaat al-Salaam. [1]

The Ebonites were led by the Principles, a group of veteran warriors. They left their names behind and were known by the dominant characteristic of their personalities, in a bizarre reflection of the abilities possessed by the entity within the stone. [2]

The Ebonite Templars were the basic soldiers of the Order of the Ebon Hand. The order was not particularly large, so its leaders made certain that every warrior among their ranks was well trained and prepared to face almost any challenge that might present itself. The basic Templar had had several years of training, and had passed the Test of the Ebon Stone. [3]

The Ebonites was a military organization, [5] so they were not a religion, and their members and Order were not influenced by the religions which were in contact with them, such as the SenpetTen Thousand Gods, the Yodotai Pantheon, or the gods of the Ivory Kingdoms. They worshipped the Ebon Stone, which contained a dangerous threat to all that they held dear. They sought to control that within them that was dark and weak, and drive it from their persons, wishing to be like the stone. [6]

They used all the known languages, but the Ivindi, the one of the Ivory Kingdoms was used by all of them. It was not know by the rest of the cultures of the Jewel so they could talk between them mantaining the secrecy. [7]

Some warriors and diplomats from one or more countries, far away from the lands later known as Rokugan, made a dangerous journey which lasted months, traveling through wastes until they reached the Ivory Kingdoms. It was not known the name of the nations, the purpose of the travel, neither how they knew of the Kingdoms. [10]

Somehow they inadvertently released a terrible evil into the world, the Lying Darkness. Many of them died when attempted to destroy the beast, until they were aided by a prophet who was known as Mekhem in the Burning Sands and Shinsei in Rokugan. Mekhem managed to defeat the Dark God, and entrapped part of its essence inside a stone, which became black under its influence. Those who touched it and endured the evil inside had the hand black, and the Order of the Ebon Hand was founded. The Ebonites were charged to protect the stone and ensure that the evil was never again released. Those who did not pass te Test committed suicide, to maintain the secrecy of the new Order. [2] They wrote and followed a code of conduct. [11]

The Ebonites recruited a powerful sorcerer, who was the first who researched the Stone, with dedication and force of will. He developed a ritual that allowed a individual to take a small amount of the power inside the Stone. In return, they lost a small part of his identity. The sorcerer was the first, and his real name was forgotten, and only remained the name he adopted, Will. [1]

The Ebonites allowed the outcasts, those who did not pass the Test, to live. In the 6th century the Cult of Ruhmal, worshippers of Kali-Ma the Destroyer, knew of the stone by a man who had failed the Test. They believed it contained a servant of their goddess, and attempted to destroy it. They made a direct attack that killed many templars, but repelled the assault. In the 7th century the rulers of the Ivory Kingdoms made an alliance with the Ebonites against their common enemy, but it quickly ended due to the political disenssions of the Kingdoms. [12]

After centuries of conflict the Ebonites around the year 980 decided to move the hidden stone to the Burning Sands. They made preparations in secret, and decided to unleash a suicidal attack to any known stronghold of the ruhmalist, to distract them. The Exodus, also known as the Night of the Blood, was successful, but hundreds of the Ebonites died in the cover action. They built the Temple of the Black Stone at Medinaat al-Salaam, installing the Ebon Stone inside it. The activity of the Order in the city, seeking justice and as defenders of the weak, made the Ruhmalists noticed their presence ten years after they had left the Kingdoms. [1]

They did not know what was the evil inside the Stone, but those who failed were sent away, becoming members of the Jackals. The Templars had endured the seduction of the Lying Darkness, while the Jackals did not, and were manipulated by the wicked creature. [13] After a Jackal betrayed the Ebonites' secrets to the order's other deadly enemies, the Cult of Ruhmal,
they began executing those who failed the Test of the Stone. The Ebonites chased the Jackals and killed any of them who was found. [14]

The Ebon Stone was destroyed during the events of the Awakening. After the Jinn Lord Kaleel was defeated, in a fight which took many of the Ebonites, they became a force that fought seeking the good and justice at the Jewel. The new Caliph, Adira recognized them as enforcers of the city law. [19]

In 1151 the Cult of Ruhmal became a faction within the Jackals, joining them in the sewers to escape from the Ebonite retaliation. In 1156 the Ebonites concentrated their efforts in the Jewel, affecting much of the Jackal activities, and disappeared. Their alliance had become dangerous and risked their own supervivence. The Ruhmalists were quickly destroyed or expelled by the Ebonites. [20] They believed the Cult was extincted. [21]

In 1168 a great upset happened in the Ivory Kingdoms, and the assassinations there had become rampant. They lost all contact with the nation they considered their home. Judgment planned to send a military expedition to know what had happened. [21] The Ruhmalist and their Goddess Kali-Ma would kill the people there, becoming the Ruined Kingdoms. [22]

In 1169 their ancient foes, the Jackal, managed to perform a ritual that brought an Avatar of Kali-Ma, the Ebon Daughter. She initially focused in the monastic order and largerly annihilated them. [23]